Paris on the Anacostia - Today on Kojo

the first segment of today's Kojo Nnamdi show is titled Paris on the Anacostia: A Provocative Idea for DC's Waterfront. From the WAMU site:

It's an amazingly ambitious proposal by a set of architects trained to imagine the future as it could be. Join Kojo to explore a newly unveiled plan - more than four years in the making - to NARROW the Anacostia River, and remake Washington's Waterfront, with the goal of bringing in new businesses, training new workers, and completely changing the relationship between folks East and West of the River.

The show airs today at 12:23 PM on NPR, and will be available online Here.

a brighter Anacostia (neighborhood and river)

at this point I am pretty confident that the plastic bag bill will pass the DC Council, but this campaign is even broader than that. Some students approached me asking if they could help out with the campaign, and the below image is their work. Please download and use freely.

the green roof

in just one year, the green roof on top of Anacostia Gateway (corner of MLK and Good Hope) has really grown!







things to love: the vibrant green sedum and the fact that a ton of urban runoff is being recycled and used naturally rather than collecting pollutants and flowing into the river.

this morning's Capital Challenge

at Anacostia Park this morning was the ACLI Capital Challenge 5K. Open only for teams representing the Legislative, Executive, and Judicial Branches of the Federal Government, as well as the media (I counted myself), the race finished just as the rain began.



Senator Lugar, shown above, won the award for most consecutive races (28). Other notables in attendence included Representative Aaron Schock (the youngest member of Congress), Senator DeMint, and Secretary of Transportation LaHood.

photos by DG-rad

*goodlinks: the growing focus

the S. Capitol Street Bridge from Poplar Point

Consolidation for Homeland Security, Headaches for Preservationists, via New York Times
most in River East are excited about the upcoming move-in of 14,000 employees to our hood, but others still fear the campus' character will be lost

Alexander calls on all residents to protect the environment, by Greater Greater Washington
councilwoman Yvette Alexander (Ward 7) went on NPR's Kojo Nnamdi show to denounce the claims that the Anacostia bag bill is harmful to low-income residents: "No matter what your income ...it does not excuse you from being environmentally conscious and responsible."

Anacostia Streetcar Plan Runs Into Delays, via Washington Post
in an annoying but not-surprising twist, the Anacostia streetcar is now delayed until 2012. since we're delaying it, howabout running it up MLK to St. E's, then down Malcolm X to the maintenance facility?

DC Unwanted, via the Examiner
so I guess stadiums aren't the pay-anything-to-get-one economic revitalizers everyone used to clamor for. PG County has joined DC (remember Poplar Point?) in dropping plans for a new stadium-based development for MLS's most successful soccer franchise

Tuesday - Waterfront Forum

this is a pretty awesome series that the city puts on. Next forum is on Tuesday at 6:30 PM.

Click to Enlarge


hope to see you there!

www. trash free anacostia . com

a black plastic bag flies high above Valley Place

What's going on:

Council member Tommy Wells just introduced legislation this morning highlighting a new way to clean up the Anacostia River: charge 5 cents for every paper and plastic bag distributed by restaurant, take-out, grocery, and corner store establishments.

Sound crazy? This kind of program has seriously reduced bag pollution in cities like New York, San Francisco, and Seattle.

Why should I care:

Because we all want a cleaner place to live and play. In the streams leading into the Anacostia River, nearly 50% of the trash (sad there is even any) is bags. Considering the fact that 20,000 tons of trash enters the Anacostia each year, this is a total emergency.

Not to mention that so much of the litter on our own neighborhood streets is bags - mostly the small black plastic variety. And in this bill, those and every other non-recyclable bag would be completely banned.

How can I help:

1. Sign the Petition at www.TrashFreeAnacostia.com

2. B.Y.O.Bag. (they sell reusable bags at every major grocery store), or just opt out of bags altogether.

3. Smile. You are a difference-maker.

For additional information, check out the Post's article on the proposed legislation.

photo by DG-rad

kayaking the anacostia

tevas + a clear and sunny day + nature literally next door = perfect opportunity to kayak the anacostia:


photo courtesy of anacostia resident Drew J., taken between the Anacostia Park boat ramp and the arboretum

cleanup crew

Last weekend I met up with a group from the Student Conservation Association and the Southeast White House during their cleanup of the riverbank along Anacostia Park. The event was organized by the Alice Ferguson Foundation. Thank you so much to everyone for your help!

the new view

courtesy of flickr user otavio_dc

The big news last week was that, finally, the new Nationals ballpark opened within a block of the Anacostia River. Although some claim that Near Southeast (or Navy Yard, or Capitol Riverfront, as DC is trying to brand it) was already well on its way to being developed before the announcement was made to build at that location, the stadium's construction and promise has served as a major catalyst in that last two years for what is becoming a major new section of the city. Fact: people are coming to a section of the city that, before the stadium, there was no real reason to see. And they are coming in throngs.

One interesting and somewhat unexpected byproduct of all this is that, because of the stadium's location, Anacostia is suddenly being seen by thousands of people as they walk up the stadium's ramps, sit in their nosebleed seats (said rather reluctantly, as from my experience there is really no bad seat in the park), or check out the view from one of the many viewing platforms. For a region that often forgets--or never knew to begin with--that D.C. has two rivers, this is quite the change.

A quick search on Flickr shows Anacostia as quite the backdrop:


courtesy of flickr user afagen


courtesy of flickr user cljo


courtesy of flickr user ewilfong


courtesy of flickr user shepdave


courtesy of flickr user abragrace

Our River(s)

The Washington Business Journal has a good article on the importance of dredging for economic development along DC's rivers. It could really be a boon in the Anacostia because of all the pollutants on the bottom, as long as they aren't simply stirred up and washed down to the Potomac.

For article, Click Here

Must See: Lessons from the Waterfront

Because today is Blog Action Day, I am posting about this year's topic: the environment. Anacostia is no stranger to environmental issues, most of which begin and end with the river.

At last Thursday's Historic Anacostia Block Association meeting, the Multimedia Training Institute screened their latest film project, dubbed "Lessons from the Waterfront: The Anacostia". It was an impressive film, both because of its enlightening content and the fact that it was produced by a group of Ward 7 & 8 teenagers.

A few lessons I was left with were:

-Do not litter. Most of the trash that gets thrown onto the street gets washed into the storm drains and into the river.

-Build Green. If you have the opportunity, use building materials that are recycled/recyclable, and techniques such as solar panels or vegetation on your roof to save energy.

-Developers: use low-impact development. Plans that help the environment and decrease the negative effects of storm water will really help our river.

Click Here for a Post article on the film

photo for graphic by flickr user Mr. T in DC

The Post on DC's Riverfronts

While there wasn't much coverage of our side of the Anacostia waterfront (mostly because there isn't any new news to report), this article from Sunday's Post paints a good picture of DC's efforts to revive its extensive riverfront property and parkland.

I especially like the interactive graphic, which, shown from the Anacostia perspective, places an emphasis on our long-forgotten river frontage. Not the view of DC most people are used to seeing.

the birds

The canadian geese of the Anacostia River have been all over the news recently (washington post this morning) for the way they are really damaging the already struggling river ecosystem.

"It's like the relative who comes to stay at Christmas and just doesn't go home," said Jim Collier, a member of the Anacostia Watershed Citizens Advisory Committee.

Environmentalists are proposing the park service kill the birds, but public input is accepted Here until August 10.

photo (though altered) courtesy of flickr user annkelliott